Japanese Soft Robots

A recent New
Scientist article highlights the shape-changing soft
robots developed by Shinichi
Hirai and Yuuta
Sugiyama at Ritsumeikan University in Kusatsu, Japan. The
wheel-shaped robots move by continously alterning their shape. They are
able to roll over flat surfaces, climb up to 20-degree slopes, and jump
up to 8 centimeters into the air simply by changing their shape. More
photos and video are available on Yuuta's website.